System and method to provide a response to an inquiry

ABSTRACT

Disclosed are systems and methods to provide a response to an inquiry. The systems and methods provide techniques to receive an inquiry from a party, wherein the inquiry comprises a plurality of inquiry classifiers that are provided by the party, determine a party status, translate the plurality of inquiry classifiers and the party status into a skill set, route the inquiry to a primary representative based on the skill set, and provide a inquiry response to the party.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No.14/154,985, filed Jan. 14, 2014, now U.S. Pat. No. 9,036,810, which is acontinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 11/734,486, filed Apr.12, 2007, now U.S. Pat. No. 8,630,402. The disclosure of eachapplication is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety and madea part hereof.

FIELD OF THE DISCLOSURE

Various embodiments of the disclosure pertain to a system and method toreceive an inquiry from a party, wherein the inquiry comprises aplurality of inquiry classifiers that are provided by the party,determine a party status, translate the plurality of inquiry classifiersand the party status into a skill set, route the inquiry to a primaryrepresentative based on the skill set, and provide a inquiry response tothe party.

BACKGROUND

Providing a response to an inquiry is well-known and readily appreciatedby those of skill in the art. Typically, a customer may have questionsabout a good or service provided by a provider, and that customer maysubmit an inquiry to the provider. For example, the provider may providea form on a website for the customer to submit the inquiry, and thatform may ask for a general subject and a brief description of theinquiry. The inquiry is then sent to a representative of the provider,and the representative provides the customer with a response to theinquiry.

However, when the provider provides multiple lines of business includingmany different goods and/or services, such conventional systems andmethods for providing a response to an inquiry raise a number of issues.Typically, the different lines of business use different processes andapplications for responding to the customer inquiries, resulting in anappearance to the customer that the provider is a plurality ofindependent businesses rather than one entity including a plurality ofbusiness lines that provide multiple goods and/or services. Amultiple-business-line provider may require that the customer submittheir inquiry by classifying their question as a general subject andincluding a description of the subject matter of the question. Theinquiry is then sent to a database with all other inquiries from othercustomers. A plurality of representatives then choose inquiries from thedatabase, typically based on their knowledge of the general subject thatthe customer classified the inquiry. However, the customer mayincorrectly classify the general subject of the question, resulting inthe representative not being able to provide a response that satisfiesthe customer, or the representative may not have the proper knowledge ofthe general subject of the inquiry to provide a response that satisfiesthe customer. Furthermore, the inquiry may include multiple inquiriesthat run across different lines of businesses of the provider, and therepresentative may not have the proper knowledge to provide a responseto all the different inquiries such that the customer is satisfied withthe response. Conventional solutions to these problems include manuallyreviewing and routing inquiries to ensure that they reachrepresentatives with the proper knowledge to provide a response thatsatisfies the customer. Such solutions are time intensive and result inlonger response times. Other solutions include using artificialintelligence programs that search the description of the subject matterof the question provided by the customer and classify the inquiry basedon that terms found in that search. Such solutions are prone to errorsin classification.

Accordingly, it would be desirable to provide an improved system andmethod to provide a response to an inquiry.

SUMMARY

Various embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to systemsand methods to provide a response to an inquiry. The systems and methodsprovide techniques to receive an inquiry from a party, wherein theinquiry comprises a plurality of inquiry classifiers that are providedby the party, determine a party status, translate the plurality ofinquiry classifiers and the party status into a skill set, route theinquiry to a primary representative based on the skill set, and providea inquiry response to the party.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1a is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of a system toprovide a response to an inquiry.

FIG. 1b is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of an informationhandling system used with the system to provide a response to an inquiryof FIG. 1 a.

FIG. 1c is a schematic view illustrating an embodiment of a providerused in the system to provide a response to an inquiry of FIG. 1 a.

FIG. 2a is a flow chart illustrating an embodiment of a method toprovide a response to an inquiry.

FIG. 2b is a screen shot illustrating an embodiment of a product and/orservices website used in the method of FIG. 2 a.

FIG. 2c is a screen shot illustrating an embodiment of a credit cardwebsite used in the method of FIG. 2 a.

FIG. 2d is a screen shot illustrating an embodiment of an inquiry formwebsite used in the method of FIG. 2 a.

FIG. 2e is a screen shot illustrating an embodiment of a representativeskill set website used in the method of FIG. 2 a.

FIG. 2f is a screen shot illustrating an embodiment of a representativeworklist website used in the method of FIG. 2 a.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Referring now to FIG. 1a , in one embodiment, a system to provide aresponse to an inquiry 100 is illustrated. The system 100 includes acomputer network 105 such as, for example, a Transport ControlProtocol/Internet Protocol (TCP/IP) network (e.g., the internet or anintranet). A provider 110 is operably coupled to the network 105. Aplurality of parties 115, 120 and 125 are also operably coupled to thenetwork 105 in order to allow communication between the parties 115, 120and 125 and the provider 110. In an embodiment, the provider 110includes any entity providing products and/or services. In anembodiment, the provider 110 may include a plurality of business linessuch as, for example, banking, insurance, financial services, loanproviding, and/or a variety of other services known in the art, and theprovider 110 may offer a plurality of products and/or services in eachbusiness line. In an embodiment, the provider 110 includes a membershiporganization which provides a plurality of services for its members suchas, for example, banking, insurance, financial services, loan providing,and/or a variety of other services known in the art, wherein the membersinclude parties 115, 120 and 125. In an embodiment, the provider 110 isa third party to a party and a provider where the provider is attemptingto provide products and/or services to the party. In an embodiment, theparties 115, 120 and 125 may be, for example, a person interested in aproduct or service offered by a provider.

Each of the provider 110 and the parties 115, 120 and 125 includes arespective network interface for communicating with the network 105(e.g., outputting information to, and receiving information from, thenetwork 105), such as by transferring information (e.g., instructions,data, signals) between such parties and the network 105. Accordingly,through the network 105, the provider 110 communicates with the parties115, 120 and 125, and the parties 115, 120 and 125 communicate with theprovider 110.

For clarity, FIG. 1a depicts only one provider 110. However, the system100 may include a plurality of providers. Likewise, for clarity, FIG. 1adepicts only three parties 115, 120 and 125. However, the system 100 mayinclude a plurality of parties. In the discussion below, the party 115is a representative one of the parties 115, 120 and 125.

Each of the provider 110 and the parties 115, 120 and 125 includes arespective information handling system (IHS), a subsystem, or a part ofa subsystem for executing processes and performing operations (e.g.,processing or communicating information) in response thereto, asdiscussed further below. Each such IHS is formed by various electroniccircuitry components. Moreover, as illustrated in FIG. 1a , all suchIHSs are coupled to each other. Accordingly, the provider 110 and theparties 115, 120 and 125 operate within the network 105.

An IHS is an electronic device capable of processing, executing orotherwise handling information. Examples of an IHS include a servercomputer, a personal computer (e.g., a desktop computer or a portablecomputer such as, for example, a laptop computer), or a handheldcomputer. Examples of an IHS also include a router, a switch and otherdevices coupled to a network (e.g., the network 105).

Referring now to FIG. 1b , an IHS 130 which is representative of one ofthe IHSs described above, is illustrated. The IHS 130 may include any orall of the following: (a) a processor 130 a for executing and otherwiseprocessing instructions, (b) a plurality of input devices 130 b, whichare operably coupled to the processor 130 a, for inputting information,(c) a display device 130 c (e.g., a conventional electronic cathode raytub (CRT) device or a conventional liquid crystal display (LCD)), whichis operably coupled to the processor 130 a, for displaying information,(d) a print device 130 d (e.g. a conventional electronic printer orplotter), which is operably coupled to the processor 130 a, for printingvisual images (e.g., textual or graphic information on paper), scanningvisual images, and/or faxing visual images, (e) a computer-readablemedium 130 e, which is operably coupled to the processor 130 a, forstoring information, as discussed further below, and (f) various otherelectronic circuitry for performing other operations of the IHS 130known in the art.

For example, the IHS 130 includes (a) a network interface (e.g.,circuitry) for communicating between the processor 130 a and the network105 and (b) a memory device (e.g., random access memory (RAM) device orread only memory (ROM) device for storing information (e.g.,instructions executed by processor 130 a and data operated upon byprocessor 130 a in response to such instructions)). Accordingly theprocessor 130 a is operably coupled to the network 105, the inputdevices 130 b, the display device 130 c, the print device 130 d, and thecomputer-readable medium 130 e, as illustrated in FIG. 1 b.

For example, in response to signals from the processor 130 a, thedisplay device 130 c displays visual images. Information may be input tothe processor 130 a from the input devices 130 b, and the processor 130a may receive such information from the input devices 130 b. Also, inresponse to signals from the processor 130 a, the print device 130 d mayprint visual images on paper, scan visual images, and/or fax visualimages.

The input devices include a variety of input devices known in the artsuch as, for example, a conventional electronic keyboard and a pointingdevice such as, for example, a conventional electronic “mouse”,rollerball, or light pen. The keyboard may be operated to inputalphanumeric text information to the processor 130 a, and the processor130 a may receive such alphanumeric text information from the keyboard.The pointing device may be operated to input cursor-control informationto the processor 130 a, and the processor 130 a may receive such cursorcontrol information from the pointing device.

The computer-readable medium 130 e and the processor 130 a arestructurally and functionally interrelated with one another as describedbelow in further detail. Each IHS of the illustrative embodiment isstructurally and functionally interrelated with a respectivecomputer-readable medium, similar to the manner in which the processor130 a is structurally and functionally interrelated with thecomputer-readable medium 130 e. In that regard, the computer-readablemedium 130 e is a representative one of such computer-readable mediaincluding, for example, but not limited to, a hard disk drive.

The computer-readable medium 130 e stores (e.g., encodes, records, orembodies) functional descriptive material (e.g., including but notlimited to software (also referred to as computer programs orapplications) or data structures). Such functional descriptive materialimparts functionality when encoded on the computer-readable medium 130e. Also, such functional descriptive material is structurally andfunctionally interrelated to the computer-readable medium 130 e.

With such functional descriptive material, data structures definestructural and functional interrelationships between such datastructures and the computer-readable medium 130 e (and other aspects ofthe system 100). Such interrelationships permit the data structures'functionality to be realized. Also, within such functional descriptivematerial, computer programs define structural and functionalinterrelationships between such computer programs and thecomputer-readable medium 130 e (and other aspects of the system 100).Such interrelationships permit the computer programs' functionality tobe realized.

For example, the processor 130 a reads (e.g., accesses or copies) suchfunctional descriptive material from the computer-readable medium 130 eonto the memory device of the IHS 130, and the IHS 130 (moreparticularly, the processor 130 a) performs its operations (as describedelsewhere herein) in response to such material which is stored in thememory device of the IHS 130. More particularly, the processor 130 aperforms the operation of processing a computer application (that isstored, encoded, recorded, or embodied on a computer-readable medium)for causing the processor 130 a to perform additional operations (asdescribed elsewhere herein). Accordingly, such functional descriptivematerial exhibits a functional interrelationship with the way in whichprocessor 130 a executes its processes and performs its operations.

Further, the computer-readable medium 130 e is an apparatus from whichthe computer application is accessible by the processor 130 a, and thecomputer application is processable by the processor 130 a for causingthe processor 130 a to perform such additional operations. In additionto reading such functional descriptive material from thecomputer-readable medium 130 e, the processor 130 a is capable ofreading such functional descriptive material from (or through) thenetwork 105 which is also a computer-readable medium (or apparatus).Moreover, the memory device of the IHS 130 is itself a computer-readablemedium (or apparatus).

Referring now to FIGS. 1a, 1b and 1c , the provider 110 is illustratedin more detail. A communication engine 110 a which may be, for example,software stored on the computer-readable medium 130 e in the IHS 130, isincluded in the provider 110 and is operably coupled to the network 105,described above with reference to FIG. 1a , and to a party database 110b. A translating engine 110 c which may be, for example, software storedon the computer-readable medium 130 e in the IHS 130 or a representativeof the provider 110, is included in the provider 110 and is operablycoupled to the communication engine 110 a, the network 105, describedabove with reference to FIG. 1a , and a translating database 110 d. Arouting engine 110 e which may be, for example, software stored on thecomputer-readable medium 130 e in the IHS 130 or a representative of theprovider 110, is included in the provider 110 and is operably coupled tothe customer communication engine 110 a, the network 105, describedabove with reference to FIG. 1a , the translating engine 110 c, and arepresentative database 110 f. A metrics engine 110 g which may be, forexample, software stored on the computer-readable medium 130 e in theIHS 130 or a representative of the provider 110, is included in theprovider 110 and is operably coupled to the customer communicationengine 110 a, the network 105, described above with reference to FIG. 1a, and a metrics database 110 h. In an embodiment, the party database 110b, the translating database 110 d, the representative database 110 f,and/or the metrics database 110 h are conventional databases known inthe art. In an embodiment, the party database 110 b, the translatingdatabase 110 d, the representative database 110 f, and/or the metricsdatabase 110 h may be located outside the provider 110 and stilloperably coupled to the provider 110 and the communication engine 110 athrough, for example, the network 105, described above with reference toFIG. 1a . In an embodiment, the party database 110 b, the translatingdatabase 110 d, the representative database 110 f, and/or the metricsdatabase 110 h include a plurality of databases. In an embodiment, theprovider 110 is a membership organization and the party database 110 bincludes a variety of previously collected information on members of themembership organization. In an embodiment, the party database 110 b, thetranslating database 110 d, the representative database 110 f, and/orthe metrics database 110 h are publicly available databases. In anembodiment, the party database 110 b, the translating database 110 d,the representative database 110 f, and/or the metrics database 110 h areprivate databases which are available to be accessed by the provider110.

Referring now to FIGS. 1a, 1b, 1c, 2a and 2b , a method 200 to provide aresponse to an inquiry is illustrated. The illustrated embodiment of themethod 200 is described below as it may be applied to a website thattransfers information over a network such as, for example, the network105, described above with reference to FIG. 1a . However, the method 200is not limited to websites and may be practiced using phonecommunication, fax communication, short message services or textmessaging, face-to-face communication, and a variety of othercommunication techniques known in the art. Throughout the description ofthe method 200, embodiments will be briefly described that utilize theseforms of communication that are alternatives to the websites used in theillustrated embodiment. The method 200 begins at step 202 where theprovider 110 communicates with a party such as, for example, the party115, described above with reference to FIG. 1a . In the illustratedembodiment, the provider 110 provides a products and/or services website202 a through the network 105. The products and/or services website 202a includes an insurance product and/or service 202 aa, a banking productand/or service 202 ab, an investment product and/or service 202 ac, anda financial advice product and/or service 202 ad. The insurance productand/or service 202 aa includes a plurality of links such as, forexample, an auto insurance link 202 aaa, a home and property insurancelink 202 aab, a business insurance link 202 aac, a life insurance link202 aad, and an annuities insurance link 202 aae. The banking productand/or service 202 ab includes a plurality of links such as, forexample, an checking link 202 aba, a savings link 202 abb, a creditcards link 202 abc, a loans link 202 abd, a Certificate of Deposits(CDs) link 202 abe, and a youth banking link 202 abf. The investmentproduct and/or service 202 ac includes a plurality of links such as, forexample, an mutual funds link 202 aca, a brokerage link 202 acb, acollege savings link 202 acc, a personal asset management link 202 acd,an annuities link 202 ace, and a Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs)link 202 acf. The financial advice product or service 202 ad includes alearn more link 202 ada. In an embodiment, the provider 110 provides aplurality products and/or services websites that are substantiallysimilar to the products and/or services website 202 a but which eachcontain products and/or services relating to different business lines ofthe provider 110. In an alternative embodiment, the provider 110 mayprovide information about products and/or services in a newspaper, on abillboard, in a television ad, or in a variety of other locations usinga variety of other methods known in the art.

Referring now to FIGS. 1a, 1b, 1c, 2a, 2b and 2c , the method 200 thenproceeds to step 204 where the party 115 desires more information. Whileviewing the products and/or service website 202 a in step 202 of themethod 200, the party 115 may desire more information on a first subjectsuch as, for example, credit cards. The party 115 may then use thecredit card link 202 abc under the banking products and/or services 202ab to access a credit cards information website 204 a. Upon theselection of the credit card link 202 abc by the party 115, thecommunication engine 110 a provides the party 115 with the credit cardswebsite 204 a. The credit card website 204 a includes a plurality ofinformation 204 aa about credit cards offered by the provider. Thecredit card website 204 a may also include an application section 204 abhaving a join link 204 aba such that the party 115 may apply for acredit card 204 ac by selecting the join link 204 aba. The credit cardwebsite 204 a also includes a contact a representative link 204 ac.

Referring now to FIGS. 1a, 1b, 1c, 2a, 2c and 2d , the method 200 thenproceeds to step 206 where the party 115 provides an inquiry. If theparty 115 does not find the desired information on the first subjectdesired in step 204 of the method 200, the party 115 may use the contacta representative link 204 ac to access a inquiry form website 206 a.Upon the selection of the contact a representative link 204 ac by theparty 115, the communication engine 110 a provides the party 115 withthe inquiry form website 206 a. The inquiry form website 206 a includesa party identifying section 206 aa having a party identification field206 aaa and a security field 206 aab. The inquiry form website 206 aalso includes a inquiry classification section 206 ab having a pluralityof inquiry classifier fields 206 aba, 206 abb and 206 abc. The inquiryform website 206 a also includes a inquiry narrative section 206 ac anda submit link 206 ad. In an embodiment, the provider 110 may be amembership organization, the party 115 may be a member of the membershiporganization, and the party 115 may provide a party identifier in theparty identification field 206 aaa such as, for example, a member numberprovided by provider 110, and a security password in the security field206 aab such as, for example, any combination of characters that theprovider 110 has associated with the party 115 and provided to the party115. In an alternative embodiment, the party 115 may not be a member ofthe membership organization, and the party identification field 206 aaaand the security field 206 aab in the party identifying section 206 aamay be left blank. The party 115 then provides an inquiry classifier ineach of the inquiry classifier fields 206 aba, 206 abb and 206 abc ofthe inquiry classification section 206 ab. In an embodiment, each of theplurality of inquiry classifier fields 206 aba, 206 abb and 206 abc aredrop-down menus. In an embodiment, a first inquiry classifier may beselected from the drop down menu in the inquiry classifier field 206 abaand the selection of that first inquiry classifier dictates theavailability of choices for a second inquiry classifier in the drop downmenu in the inquiry classifier field 206 abb, and the selection of thesecond inquiry classifier in the drop down menu in the inquiryclassifier field 206 abc dictates the availability of choices for athird inquiry classifier in the drop down menu in the inquiry classifierfield 206 abc. The party 115 also provides a brief description ornarrative of the inquiry in the inquiry narrative section 206 ac. Theparty 115 may then select the submit link 206 ad to provide the inquiryto the provider 110. In an embodiment, a plurality of parties such as,for example, the parties 115, 120 and 125 may provide a plurality ofinquiries to the provider 110 regarding a plurality of differentsubjects in substantially the same manner as described above. In anembodiment, the inquiry may be for the first subject and a secondsubject relating to any of the products and/or services offered by theprovider 110 in the plurality of business lines of the provider 110. Inan alternative embodiment, the party 115 may see the product and/orservice information, for example, in a newspaper, on a billboard, in atelevision ad, or in a variety of other locations using a variety ofother methods known in the art, and may access the inquiry form using avariety of different methods such as, for example, calling a phonenumber or sending a text message. In the case of calling a phone numberto access the inquiry form, the party 115 may be connected to arepresentative through phone communication and the representative mayprompt the party 115 for the inquiry classifiers and/or the party statusinformation. In the case of sending a text message to access the inquiryform, the party 115 may use a short message service (SMS) to provide theinquiry classifiers and/or the party status information to therepresentative of the provider 110.

Referring now to FIGS. 1a, 1b, 1c, 2a and 2d , the method 200 thenproceeds to step 208 where the inquiry is translated. The communicationengine 110 a takes the party identifier provided in the partyidentification field 206 aaa and the security password provided in thesecurity field 206 aab, and accesses the party database 110 b toretrieve a party status of the party 115. In an embodiment, the partydatabase 110 b includes previously collected information on the party115 and the party status may be, for example, military rank, employmentstatus, job title, or a variety of other party status known in the artand listed below with reference to the charts describing step 208 of themethod 200. In an embodiment, the party status includes any attribute ofthe party 115 that is used to classify the inquiry from the party 115.The translating engine 110 c then accesses the translating database 110d and may use the party status and the inquiry classifiers provided inthe inquiry classifier fields 206 aba, 206 abb and 206 abc to translatethe inquiry into a skill set. In an embodiment, the translating engine110 c may use information from the communication engine 110 a such as,for example, the content of the website that the party 115 was on beforethe party 115 accessed the inquiry form website 206 a. In an embodiment,the translating engine 110 c may include an artificial intelligenceengine that is operable to access the narrative provided in the inquirynarrative section 206 ac on the inquiry form website 206 a and determinea first or second subject that the party 115 desires information on. Inan embodiment, different combinations of the first inquiry classifier208 a, second inquiry classifier 208 b, third inquiry classifier 208 c,and party status 208 d translate into a skill set 208 e. For example,the chart below illustrates a plurality of possibilities available for afirst inquiry classifier 208 a of “Banking”, including the availablesecond inquiry classifiers 208 b when “Banking” is selected as the firstinquiry classifier and the available third inquiry classifiers for theselected second inquiry classifiers. Furthermore, the chart belowillustrates that the party status 208 d may or may not help determinethe skill set 208 e:

1^(st) Inquiry 2^(nd) Inquiry 3^(rd) Inquiry Classifier ClassifierClassifier Party 208a 208b 208c Status 208d Skill Set 208e Banking ANYANY Bank Executive Bank Executive Complaint Complaint Banking ANY ANYEmployee Employee Submitted Bank Inquiries Banking ANY ANY Select BankSelect Banking Auto, Automatic Payment Bank Automatic PaymentRecreational, and Update Update Personal Loans Banking Auto, NegotiationBank Negotiation Services Recreational, and Services Personal LoansBanking Auto, Other Bank Auto, Recreational, Recreational, and andPersonal Loans Other Personal Loans Banking Auto, Payment Bank PaymentInformation Recreational, and Information Personal Loans Banking Auto,Payoff Quote/Loan Bank Payoff Quote/Loan Recreational, and BalanceBalance Personal Loans Banking Auto, Status of Application Bank Statusof Application Recreational, and Personal Banking Banking CDs/IRAsAccount Activity Bank CDs/IRAsAccount Activity Banking CDs/IRAs InterestBank CDs/IRAsInterest Banking CDs/IRAs Renewal Bank CDs/IRAsRenewalBanking CDs/IRAs Rollover Bank CDs/IRAsRollover Banking Checking &Savings ATM/Debit Card Bank ATM/Debit Card Banking Checking & SavingsAccount Bank Account Activity/History Activity/History Banking Checking& Savings Check Orders/ Bank Check Orders/ Deposit Slips Deposit SlipsBanking Checking & Savings Funds Transfer Bank Funds Transfer BankingChecking & Savings Other Bank Checking & Savings Other Banking Checking& Savings Signature Cards Bank Signature Cards Banking Checking &Savings Statements Bank Statements Banking Credit Cards Add CardholderBank Add Cardholder Banking Credit Cards Annual Percentage Bank AnnualPercentage Rate (APR) Rate (APR) Banking Credit Cards Balance InquiryBank Balance Inquiry Banking Credit Cards CC Disputes Bank CC DisputesBanking Credit Cards CC/Debit Fraud Bank CC/Debit Fraud Banking CreditCards Credit Limit Inquiry Bank Credit Limit Inquiry Banking CreditCards Debit Card Disputes Bank Debit Card Disputes Banking Credit CardsOther Bank Credit Cards Other Banking Credit Cards Payment Inquiry BankPayment Inquiry Banking Home Equity Loans About Home Equity Bank AboutHome Equity Loans Loans Banking Home Equity Loans Convenience BankConvenience Check Check Request Request Banking Home Equity LoansIncrease Credit Bank Increase Credit Limit Limit Banking Home EquityLoans Other Bank Home Equity Loans Other Banking Home Equity LoansStatus of Bank Status of Application Application BankingMortgages/Movers Mortgage Bank Mortgages Advantage BankingMortgages/Movers Movers Advantage Bank Movers Advantage AdvantageBanking Mortgages/Movers Other Bank Mortgages/Movers Advantage AdvantageOther Banking Other N/A Bank Other Banking Web Bill Pay Non Payment BankWeb BillPay non- Inquiry Payment Inquiry Banking Web Bill Pay Other BankWeb BillPay Other Banking Web Bill Pay Payment Inquiry Bank Web BillPayPayment InquiryFor example, the chart below illustrates a plurality of possibilitiesavailable for a first inquiry classifier 208 a of “Enterprise”. Thechart below illustrates that the party status 208 d is the only factorto determine the skill set 208 e for a first inquiry classifier 208 a of“Enterprise”:

1^(st) Inquiry 2^(nd) Inquiry 3^(rd) Inquiry Classifier ClassifierClassifier Party Skill 208a 208b 208c Status 208d Set 208e EnterpriseANY ANY Enterprise Enterprise Executive Executive Complaint ComplaintEnterprise ANY ANY Enterprise Enterprise Select SelectFor example, the chart below illustrates a plurality of possibilitiesavailable for a first inquiry classifier 208 a of “Financial Guidance”including the available second inquiry classifiers 208 b when “FinancialGuidance” is selected as the first inquiry classifier and the availablethird inquiry classifiers for the selected second inquiry classifiers.Furthermore, the chart below illustrates that the party status 208 d maynot help determine the skill set 208 e:

1^(st) Inquiry 2^(nd) Inquiry 3^(rd) Inquiry Party Classifier ClassifierClassifier Status 208a 208b 208c 208d Skill Set 208e Financial GuidanceBuying A Car Get an Auto Loan Financial Guidance Buying A CarGet an AutoLoan Financial Guidance Buying A Car Negotiate Vehicle FinancialGuidance Buying Price A Car Negotiate Vehicle Price Financial GuidanceBuying A Car Request an Auto Financial Guidance Buying Insurance Quote ACarRequest an Auto Insurance Quote Financial Guidance Change In GettingDivorced Financial Guidance Marital Status Change In Marital StatusFinancial Guidance Change In Getting Married Financial Guidance MaritalStatus Change In Marital Status Financial Guidance Changing JobsMilitary Retirement Financial Guidance Changing Jobs Financial GuidanceChanging Jobs Review Your Cash Financial Guidance Flow and BudgetChanging Jobs Financial Guidance Changing Jobs Review Your LifeFinancial Guidance Insurance Review Your Life Insurance FinancialGuidance Changing Jobs Review Your Financial Guidance Retirement NeedsChanging Jobs Financial Guidance Deployment Review Your FinancialGuidance Finances Deployment Review Your Finances Financial GuidanceDeployment Review Your Life Financial Guidance Insurance Review YourLife Insurance Financial Guidance Deployment Update Your Auto FinancialGuidance Insurance Deployment Update Your Auto Insurance FinancialGuidance Free Financial N/A Financial Guidance Free Advice FinancialAdvice Financial Guidance Having a Baby Questions about FinancialGuidance and Parenting College Savings Questions about College PlansSavings Plans Financial Guidance Having a Baby Review Your LifeFinancial Guidance and Parenting Insurance Review Your Life InsuranceFinancial Guidance Moving Buy or Sell Your Financial Guidance MovingHome Buy or Sell Your Home Financial Guidance Moving Get a HomeFinancial Guidance Moving Insurance Quote Get a Home Insurance QuoteFinancial Guidance Moving Get a Home Loan Financial Guidance Moving Geta Home Loan Financial Guidance Moving Get a Real Estate FinancialGuidance Moving Agent Get a Real Estate Agent Financial Guidance OtherFinancial Other Financial Guidance Other Advice Financial AdviceFinancial Guidance Personalized Already Enrolled Financial GuidanceFinancial Plans Personalized Financial Plans Already Enrolled FinancialGuidance Personalized Looking For Financial Guidance Financial PlansInformation Personalized Financial Plans Looking For InformationFinancial Guidance Retirement Already Saving Financial GuidanceRetirement Already Saving Financial Guidance Retirement Considering LongFinancial Guidance Term Care Retirement Considering Insurance Long TermCare Insurance Financial Guidance Retirement Just Starting Out FinancialGuidance Retirement Just Starting Out Financial Guidance RetirementMilitary Retirement Financial Guidance Retirement Military RetirementFinancial Guidance Retirement Retired Financial Guidance RetirementRetired Financial Guidance Survivorship Receiving an Financial GuidanceInheritance Survivorship Financial Guidance Survivorship Review LifeFinancial Guidance Insurance SurvivorshipFor example, the chart below illustrates a plurality of possibilitiesavailable for a first inquiry classifier 208 a of “Investments”including the available second inquiry classifiers 208 b when“Investments” is selected as the first inquiry classifier and theavailable third inquiry classifiers for the selected second inquiryclassifiers. Furthermore, the chart below illustrates that the partystatus 208 d may or may not help determine the skill set 208 e:

1^(st) Inquiry 2^(nd) Inquiry 3^(rd) Inquiry Classifier ClassifierClassifier Party 208a 208b 208c Status 208d Skill Set 208e InvestmentsANY ANY Employee Employee Submitted IMCO Inquiries Investments ANY ANYIMCO IMCO Executive Executive Complaint Complaint Investments ANY ANYSelect IMCO Select Investments Annuities Cancellation LifeCo AnnuitiesCancellation Investments Annuities Information about a LifeCo AnnuitiesNew Contract Information about a New Contract Investments AnnuitiesOther LifeCo Annuities Other Investments Annuities Service to yourLifeCo Annuities Service Existing Contract to your Existing ContractInvestments Brokerage Services Existing Account IMCO Brokerage ServicesQuestions/Servicing Existing Account Questions/Servicing InvestmentsBrokerage Services Non-USAA Mutual IMCO Brokerage Services FundsNon-USAA Mutual Funds Investments Brokerage Services Open an IMCOBrokerage Services Account/Request Open an Information Account/RequestInformation Investments Brokerage Services Other IMCO Brokerage ServicesOther Investments Brokerage Services Scheduled Transfers IMCO BrokerageServices Scheduled Transfers Investments Brokerage ServicesStock/Trading IMCO Brokerage Services Questions Stock/Trading QuestionsInvestments Brokerage Services Transfer Funds IMCO Brokerage ServicesTransfer Funds Investments Brokerage Services Web Site IMCO BrokerageServices Questions/Comments Web Site Questions/Comments InvestmentsCollege Savings Existing Account IMCO College SavingsQuestions/Servicing Existing Account Questions/Servicing InvestmentsCollege Savings Incoming Transfer IMCO College Savings Incoming TransferInvestments College Savings Open an IMCO College Savings Account/RequestOpen an Information Account/Request Information Investments CollegeSavings Other IMCO College Savings Other Investments College SavingsQuestions About IMCO College Savings College Savings Questions AboutCollege Plans Savings Plans Investments College Savings Sell IMCOCollege Savings Shares/Outbound Sell Shares/Outbound Transfer TransferInvestments College Savings Web Site IMCO College SavingsQuestions/Comments Web Site Questions/Comments Investments IRAs Convertto Roth IRA IMCO IRAs Convert to Roth IRA Investments IRAs ExistingAccount IMCO IRAs Existing Questions/Servicing AccountQuestions/Servicing Investments IRAs Incoming IMCO IRAs IncomingTransfer/Rollover Transfer/Rollover Investments IRAs Open an AccountIMCO IRAs Open an Account Investments IRAs Other IMCO IRAs OtherInvestments IRAs Questions About IMCO IRAs Questions IRAs About IRAsInvestments IRAs Web Site IMCO IRAs Web Site Questions/CommentsQuestions/Comments Investments IRAs Withdrawal IMCO IRAs WithdrawalFunds/Outbound Funds/Outbound Transfers Transfers Investments MutualFunds Automatic IMCO Mutual Funds Contributions Automatic ContributionsInvestments Mutual Funds Existing Account IMCO Mutual FundsQuestions/Servicing Existing Account Questions/Servicing InvestmentsMutual Funds Mutual Fund IMCO Mutual Funds Questions/Comments MutualFund Questions/Comments Investments Mutual Funds Open an IMCO MutualFunds Account/Request Open an Information Account/Request InformationInvestments Mutual Funds Other IMCO Mutual Funds Other InvestmentsMutual Funds Transfer Funds IMCO Mutual Funds Transfer Funds InvestmentsMutual Funds Web Site IMCO Mutual Funds Web Questions/Comments SiteQuestions/Comments Investments Other N/A IMCO Investments OtherInvestments Personalized Other IMCO Personalized Asset Asset ManagementOther Management Investments Personalized Questions For Your IMCOPersonalized Asset Asset Representative Management Questions ManagementFor Your Representative Investments Personalized Request Product IMCOPersonalized Asset Asset Information Management Request ManagementProduct InformationFor example, the chart below illustrates a plurality of possibilitiesavailable for a first inquiry classifier 208 a of “Other” including theavailable second inquiry classifiers 208 b when “Other” is selected asthe first inquiry classifier. Furthermore, the chart below illustratesthat the third inquiry classifier 208 c and the party status 208 d maynot help determine the skill set 208 e:

1^(st) Inquiry 2^(nd) Inquiry 3^(rd) Inquiry Party Classifier ClassifierClassifier Status 208a 208b 208c 208d Skill Set 208e Other General N/AEnterprise General Feedback Feedback Other Other N/A Enterprise OtherOther Update Personal N/A Enterprise Update Information PersonalInformation (example: Address change) Other usaa.com N/A Enterpriseusaa.com Website Website Technical Technical Support SupportFor example, the chart below illustrates a plurality of possibilitiesavailable for a first inquiry classifier 208 a of “Shopping andDiscounts” including the available second inquiry classifiers 208 b when“Shopping and Discounts” is selected as the first inquiry classifier andthe available third inquiry classifiers for the selected second inquiryclassifiers. Furthermore, the chart below illustrates that the partystatus 208 d may not help determine the skill set 208 e:

1^(st) Inquiry 2^(nd) Inquiry 3^(rd) Inquiry Party Classifier ClassifierClassifier Status 208a 208b 208c 208d Skill Set 208e Shopping &Discounts Discount Services ADT Home Security ASC Discount Services &Companion Svcs ADT Home Security & Companion Svcs Shopping & DiscountsDiscount Services AHS American ASC Discount Services Home Shield AHSAmerican Home Warranty Shield Warranty Shopping & Discounts DiscountServices Car Rentals ASC Discount Services Car Rentals Avis Shopping &Discounts Discount Services Car Rentals Budget ASC Discount Services CarRentals Budget Shopping & Discounts Discount Services Car Rentals HertzASC Discount Services Car Rentals Hertz Shopping & Discounts DiscountServices FedEx Express and ASC Discount Services Ground Delivery SvcFedEx Express and Ground Delivery Svc Shopping & Discounts DiscountServices Other ASC Discount Services Other Shopping & Discounts OnlineGet Order Status ASC Online Shopping/ Shopping/USAA Catalog Orders GetOrder Catalog Orders Status Shopping & Discounts Online JewelryAppraisals ASC Online Shopping/ Shopping/USAA Catalog Orders JewelryCatalog Orders Appraisals Shopping & Discounts Online Order Flowers- ASCOnline Shopping/ Shopping/USAA Teleflora Catalog Orders Order CatalogOrders Flowers- Teleflora Shopping & Discounts Online Other ASC OnlineShopping/ Shopping/USAA Catalog Orders Other Catalog Orders Shopping &Discounts Online Request Product ASC Online Shopping/ Shopping/USAAInformation Catalog Orders Request Catalog Orders Product InformationShopping & Discounts Online Returns and ASC Online Shopping/Shopping/USAA Exchanges Catalog Orders Returns Catalog Orders andExchanges Shopping & Discounts Other Other ASC Shopping & DiscountsOther Shopping & Discounts Travel Services Car Rentals ASC TravelServices Car Rentals Avis Shopping & Discounts Travel Services CarRentals Budget ASC Travel Services Car Rentals Budget Shopping &Discounts Travel Services Car Rentals Hertz ASC Travel Services CarRentals Hertz Shopping & Discounts Travel Services Cruise Travel and ASCTravel Services Land Tours Cruise Travel and Land Tours Shopping &Discounts Travel Services Get Travel ASC Travel Services Get InsuranceTravel Insurance Shopping & Discounts Travel Services Other ASC TravelServices OtherIn an embodiment, different combination of the first inquiry classifier208 a, second inquiry classifier 208 b, third inquiry classifier 208 c,and party status 208 d translate into a first translated level 208 f, asecond translated level 208 g, and a skill set 208 h. For example, thechart below illustrates a plurality of possibilities available for afirst inquiry classifier 208 a of “Insurance” including the availablesecond inquiry classifiers 208 b when “Insurance” is selected as thefirst inquiry classifier and the available third inquiry classifiers forthe selected second inquiry classifiers. Furthermore, the chart belowillustrates that the party status 208 d may or may not help determinethe a first translated level 208 f, the second translated level 208 g,and the skill set 208 h:

2^(nd) 1^(st) 2^(nd) 1^(st) Inquiry Inquiry 3^(rd) Inquiry PartyTranslated Translated Classifier Classifier Classifier Status LevelLevel Skill Set 208a 208b 208c 208d 208f 208g 208h Insurance AutoAntique Auto Employee General Auto Auto Agency Employee Insurance AutoAntique Auto Select General Auto Auto Select Agency Insurance AutoAntique Auto General Auto Antique Auto Agency Insurance Property BoatEmployee General Property Property Agency Employee Insurance PropertyBoat Select General Property Property Agency Select Insurance PropertyBoat General Property Boat Agency Insurance Property Earthquake EmployeeGeneral Property Property Agency Employee Insurance Property EarthquakeSelect General Property Property Agency Select Insurance PropertyEarthquake General Property Earthquake Agency Insurance Property FloodEmployee General Property Property Agency Employee Insurance PropertyFlood Select General Property Property Agency Select Insurance PropertyFlood General Property Flood Agency Insurance Auto Antique Auto EuropeInternational Auto Auto International Europe Insurance Auto Antique Autonon- International Auto Auto Europe International non-Europe InsuranceAuto Auto Sales Europe International Auto Auto International EuropeInsurance Auto Auto Sales non- International Auto Auto EuropeInternational non-Europe Insurance Auto Billing Europe InternationalAuto Auto International Europe Insurance Auto Billing non- InternationalAuto Auto Europe International non-Europe Insurance Auto Complex EuropeInternational Auto Auto Billing International Europe Insurance AutoBilling non- International Auto Auto Complex Europe Internationalnon-Europe Insurance Auto Other Europe International Auto AutoInternational Europe Insurance Auto Other non- International Auto AutoEurope International non-Europe Insurance Auto Quote/Adjust EuropeInternational Auto Auto Existing International Policy Europe InsuranceAuto Quote/Adjust non- International Auto Auto Existing EuropeInternational Policy non-Europe Insurance Property Billing EuropeInternational Property Property International Europe Insurance PropertyBilling non- International Property Property Europe Internationalnon-Europe Insurance Property Boat Europe International PropertyProperty International Europe Insurance Property Boat non- InternationalProperty Property Europe International non-Europe Insurance PropertyComplex Europe International Property Property Billing InternationalEurope Insurance Property Complex non- International Property PropertyBilling Europe International non-Europe Insurance Property EarthquakeEurope International Property Property International Europe InsuranceProperty Earthquake non- International Property Property EuropeInternational non-Europe Insurance Property Flood Europe InternationalProperty Property International Europe Insurance Property Flood non-International Property Property Europe International non-EuropeInsurance Property Other Europe International Property PropertyInternational Europe Insurance Property Other non- InternationalProperty Property Europe International non-Europe Insurance PropertyQuote/Adjust Europe International Property Property an ExistingInternational Policy Europe Insurance Property Quote/Adjust non-International Property Property an Existing Europe International Policynon-Europe Insurance Annuities ANY Complaint Life Co. Annuities LifeComplaint Insurance Annuities ANY Employee Life Co. Annuities LifeEmployee Insurance Annuities ANY Life Life Co. Annuities Life ExecutiveExecutive Complaint Complaint Insurance Annuities ANY Select Life Co.Annuities Life Select Insurance Annuities Cancellation Life Co.Annuities Cancellation Insurance Annuities Information Life Co.Annuities Information about a New about a New Contract ContractInsurance Annuities Other Life Co. Annuities Other/Misc. InsuranceAnnuities Service to Life Co. Annuities Service to your Existing yourExisting Contract Contract Insurance Life ANY Life Life Co. InsuranceLife Executive Executive Life Complaint Complaint Insurance Life ANYComplaint Life Co. Life Life Complaint Insurance Life ANY Employee LifeCo. Life Life Employee Insurance Life ANY Select Life Co. Life LifeSelect Insurance Life Cancellation Life Co. Life Cancellation InsuranceLife Get A Quote Life Co. Life Get A Quote Insurance Life Other Life Co.Life Other/Misc. Insurance Life Report a Life Co. Life Report a ClaimClaim Insurance Life Service to Life Co. Life Service to your Existingyour Existing Policy Policy Insurance Life Service to Life Co. LifeService to your Pending your Pending Policy Policy Insurance Medicare/ANY Complaint Life Co. Medicare/ Life Long Long Complaint Term Term CareCare Insurance Medicare/ ANY Employee Life Co. Medicare/ Life EmployeeLong Long Term Term Care Care Insurance Medicare/ ANY Life Life Co.Medicare/ Life Executive Long Executive Long Complaint Term ComplaintTerm Care Care Insurance Medicare/ ANY Select Life Co. Medicare/ LifeSelect Long Long Term Term Care Care Insurance Medicare/ Claim InquiryLife Co. Medicare/ Claim Inquiry Long for your Long for your TermExisting Term Existing Care Medicare Care Medicare Supplement SupplementPolicy Policy Insurance Medicare/ Get A Quote Life Co. Medicare/ Get AQuote Long for Medicare Long for Medicare Term or Long Term Term or LongTerm Care Care Care Care Insurance Insurance Insurance Medicare/ OtherLife Co. Medicare/ Other/Misc. Long Long Term Term Care Care InsuranceMedicare/ Service to Life Co. Medicare/ Service to Long your ExistingLong your Existing Term Medicare Term Medicare Care Supplement CareSupplement Policy Policy Insurance Auto Auto Sales Prospective MemberAuto Auto Sales Acquisition Prospective Insurance Auto Auto SalesProspective Member Auto Auto Sales Employee Acquisition ProspectiveEmployee Insurance Auto Auto Sales Prospective Member Auto Auto SalesInternational Acquisition Prospective International Insurance Auto AutoSales Prospective Member Auto Auto Sales New Acquisition ProspectiveJersey New Jersey Insurance Property Renters Sales Prospective MemberProperty Property Acquisition Prospective Insurance Property RentersSales Prospective Member Property Renters Sales InternationalAcquisition Prospective International Insurance Property Renters SalesProspective Member Property Renters Sales New Acquisition ProspectiveJersey New Jersey Insurance Property Valuable Prospective MemberProperty Property Personal Acquisition Prospective Property InsuranceProperty Valuable Prospective Member Property Property Personal EmployeeAcquisition Prospective Property Employee Insurance Property ValuableProspective Member Property Valuable Personal International AcquisitionPersonal Property Property Prospective International Insurance PropertyValuable Prospective Member Property Valuable Personal New AcquisitionPersonal Property Jersey Property Prospective New Jersey Insurance AutoComplex Employee P&C Billing Auto Auto Billing Employee Insurance AutoComplex Select P&C Billing Auto Auto Select Billing Insurance AutoComplex P&C Billing Auto Complex Billing Billing Insurance PropertyComplex Employee P&C Billing Property Property Billing EmployeeInsurance Property Complex Select P&C Billing Property Property BillingSelect Insurance Property Complex P&C Billing Property Complex BillingBilling Insurance Auto ANY P&C P&C Claims Auto P&C Claims ExecutiveClaims Executive Complaint Complaint Insurance Auto All United P&CClaims Auto All United Claims States Claims States Insurance Auto AutoClaim Central P&C Claims Auto Auto Claim Claims Region Claims CentralRegion Insurance Auto Auto Claim Employee P&C Claims Auto Auto ClaimClaims Claims Employee Insurance Auto Auto Claim International P&CClaims Auto Auto Claim Claims Claims International Insurance Auto AutoClaim MARO P&C Claims Auto Auto Claim Claims Region Claims MARO RegionInsurance Auto Auto Claim MSTRO P&C Claims Auto Auto Claim Claims RegionClaims MSTRO Region Insurance Auto Auto Claim NE Region P&C Claims AutoAuto Claim Claims Claims NE Region Insurance Auto Auto Claim SERO P&CClaims Auto Auto Claim Claims Region Claims SERO Region Insurance AutoAuto Claim SW Region P&C Claims Auto Auto Claim Claims Claims SW RegionInsurance Auto Auto Claim WESTRO P&C Claims Auto Auto Claim ClaimsRegion Claims WESTRO Region Insurance Auto Glass/Roadside P&C ClaimsAuto Glass/Roadside Claims Claims Insurance Auto Other P&C Claims AutoOther/Misc. Claims Claims Insurance Property ANY P&C P&C Claims PropertyP&C Claims Executive Claims Executive Complaint Complaint InsuranceProperty Property Central P&C Claims Property Property Claims ClaimRegion Claims Claim Central Region Insurance Property Property EmployeeP&C Claims Property Property Claims Claim Claims Claim EmployeeInsurance Property Property International P&C Claims Property PropertyClaims Claim Claims Claim International Insurance Property Property MAROP&C Claims Property Property Claims Claim Region Claims Claim MARORegion Insurance Property Property MSTRO P&C Claims Property PropertyClaims Claim Region Claims Claim MSTRO Region Insurance PropertyProperty NE Region P&C Claims Property Property Claims Claim ClaimsClaim NE Region Insurance Property Property SERO P&C Claims PropertyProperty Claims Claim Region Claims Claim SERO Region Insurance PropertyProperty SW Region P&C Claims Property Property Claims Claim ClaimsClaim SW Region Insurance Property Property WESTRO P&C Claims PropertyProperty Claims Claim Region Claims Claim WESTRO Region Insurance AutoANY P&C P&C Service Auto P&C Executive Executive Complaint ComplaintInsurance Auto Auto Sales Employee P&C Service Auto Auto EmployeeInsurance Auto Auto Sales Massachusetts P&C Service Auto Quote/AdjustExisting Policy Massachusetts Insurance Auto Auto Sales Select P&CService Auto Auto Select Insurance Auto Auto Sales P&C Service Auto AutoSales Insurance Auto Billing Employee P&C Service Auto Auto EmployeeInsurance Auto Billing Select P&C Service Auto Auto Select InsuranceAuto Billing P&C Service Auto Billing Insurance Auto Other Employee P&CService Auto Auto Employee Insurance Auto Other Select P&C Service AutoAuto Select Insurance Auto Other P&C Service Auto Other/Misc. InsuranceAuto Quote/Adjust Employee P&C Service Auto Auto Existing EmployeePolicy Insurance Auto Quote/Adjust Massachusetts P&C Service AutoQuote/Adjust Existing Existing Policy Policy Massachusetts InsuranceAuto Quote/Adjust Select P&C Service Auto Auto Select Existing PolicyInsurance Auto Quote/Adjust P&C Service Auto Quote/Adjust ExistingExisting Policy Policy Insurance Property ANY P&C P&C Service PropertyP&C Executive Executive Complaint Complaint Insurance Property BillingEmployee P&C Service Property Property Employee Insurance PropertyBilling Select P&C Service Property Property Select Insurance PropertyBilling P&C Service Property Billing Insurance Property Other EmployeeP&C Service Property Property Employee Insurance Property Other SelectP&C Service Property Property Select Insurance Property Other P&CService Property Other/Misc. Insurance Property Quote/Adjust EmployeeP&C Service Property Property an Existing Employee Policy InsuranceProperty Quote/Adjust Select P&C Service Property Property an ExistingSelect Policy Insurance Property Quote/Adjust P&C Service PropertyQuote/Adjust an Existing an Existing Policy Policy Insurance PropertyRenters Sales Employee P&C Service Property Property Employee InsuranceProperty Renters Sales Europe P&C Service Property PropertyInternational Europe Insurance Property Renters Sales Select P&C ServiceProperty Property Select Insurance Property Renters Sales non- P&CService Property Property Europe International non-Europe InsuranceProperty Renters Sales P&C Service Property Renters Sales InsuranceProperty Valuable Employee P&C Service Property Property PersonalEmployee Property Insurance Property Valuable Europe P&C ServiceProperty Property Personal International Property Europe InsuranceProperty Valuable Select P&C Service Property Property Personal SelectProperty Insurance Property Valuable non- P&C Service Property PropertyPersonal Europe International Property non-Europe Insurance PropertyValuable P&C Service Property Valuable Personal Personal PropertyProperty Insurance Property Quote a New Employee Property PropertyProperty Purchase Specialization Employee Insurance Property Quote a NewEurope Property Property Property Purchase Specialization InternationalEurope Insurance Property Quote a New Prospective Property PropertyProperty Purchase Specialization Prospective Insurance Property Quote aNew Prospective Property Property Property Purchase EmployeeSpecialization Prospective Employee Insurance Property Quote a NewProspective Property Property Quote a New Purchase InternationalSpecialization Purchase Prospective International Insurance PropertyQuote a New Select Property Property Property Purchase SpecializationSelect Insurance Property Quote a New non- Property Property PropertyPurchase Europe Specialization International non-Europe InsuranceProperty Quote a New Property Property Quote a New PurchaseSpecialization Purchase

Referring now to FIGS. 1a, 1b, 1c, 2a, 2d and 2e , the method 200 thenproceeds to step 210 where a representative is assigned to the inquiryfrom the party 115. In an embodiment, the provider 110 may include aninquiry response center having a plurality of representatives. In anembodiment, the inquiry response center may be an IHS network such as,for example, the network 105, with each of the representatives connectedto the IHS network via an IHS such as, for example, the IHS 130. Arepresentative supervisor may have access to a representative skill setwebsite 210 a, illustrated in FIG. 2e . The representative skill setwebsite 210 a includes a representative name section 210 aa, arepresentative unit number section 210 ab, a representativeidentification section 210 ac, a skill sets section 210 ad, a primaryskill set selector 210 ae, a secondary skill set selector 210 af, and areviewer selector 210 ag. The skill sets section 210 ad includes aplurality of skill set selectors that are organized under sections suchas, for example, a banking section 210 ada having a plurality ofsubsections such as, for example, a credit cards subsection 210 adaa, aCDs/IRAs subsection 210 adab, an auto, recreational, and personal loanssubsection 210 adac, and a mortgages/movers advantage subsection 210adad. A representative skill set website 210 a may be generated andmodified for every representative that is connected to the inquiryresponse center. The representative name section 210 aa includes thename of the representative that the representative skill set website 210a has been generated for, the representative unit number section 210 abincludes the number of a subsection of the inquiry response center thatthe representative belongs to, and the representative identificationsection 210 ac includes an identification number assigned to therepresentative that the representative skill set website 210 a has beengenerated for. The skills sets section 210 ad includes selectors forevery possible skill set a representative may have such as, for example,the skills sets 208 e and 208 h listed in the charts above, and therepresentative supervisor may select any of the selectors under, forexample, the credit cards subsection 210 adaa, the CDs/IRAs subsection210 adab, the auto, recreational, and personal loans subsection 210adac, and the mortgages/movers advantage subsection 210 adad thatcorrespond to knowledge possessed by the representative that therepresentative skill set website 210 a has been generated for.Furthermore, the representative supervisor may use the primary skill setselector 210 ae and the secondary skill set selector 210 af for eachskill set selected to indicate the degree of knowledge of the skill setthat is possessed by the representative. The representative supervisormay also select a reviewer selector 210 ag to indicate who may or mustreview responses created by the representative (described in furtherdetail below.) With the skill set translated in step 208 of the method200, the routing engine 110 e accesses the representative database 110 fand determines the representatives that have that skill set to provide aresponse to the inquiry. The routing engine 110 e will then determinewhich of those representatives are available to provide a response tothe inquiry (described in further detail below), and will forward theinquiry to a primary representative. In an embodiment, the routingengine 110 e searches for inquiries that match the representatives skillsets as determined using the primary skill set selector 210 ae in theskill set section 210 ad and provides those inquiries to the primaryrepresentative. If the routing engine 110 e does not find inquiries thatmatch the representatives skill sets as determined using the primaryskill set selector 210 ae in the skill set section 210 ad, the routingengine 110 e searches for inquiries that match the representatives skillsets as determined using the secondary skill set selector 210 af in theskill set section 210 ad and provides those inquiries to the primaryrepresentative. In an embodiment, the skill set for a representative asdetermined using the primary skill set selector 210 ae and the secondaryskill set selector 210 af may be modified depending on incoming inquiryvolume such that the provider 110 may manage the inquiry response centermore efficiently. In addition, the routing engine 110 e may determinewhich representatives in the inquiry response center have not beenassigned to an inquiry for the longest amount of time and may assign theinquiry to those representatives. In an embodiment, the representativesupervisor may manually assign or re-assign an inquiry to arepresentative. In an embodiment, the primary representative is thefirst representative to receive the inquiry from the part 115. In anembodiment, the representative supervisor may view all of the inquiriesin the inquiry response center by assigned skill set and representativein order to determine, for example, what skill sets are being used torespond to inquiries at any given time.

Referring now to FIGS. 1a, 1b, 1c, 2a and 2f , the method 200 thenproceeds to step 212 where the representative composes a response. In anembodiment, the primary representative may be connected to an IHSnetwork such as, for example, the network 105, via an IHS such as, forexample, the IHS 130. In an embodiment, the primary representative hasaccess to a representative worklist website 212 a, illustrated in FIG.2f . The representative worklist website 212 a includes a status section212 aa where the primary representative may set their status using aplurality of selectors such as, for example, a available selector 212aaa, an unavailable selector 212 aab, an away selector 212 aac, and anoffline selector 212 aad. The representative worklist website 212 a alsoincludes a folders section 212 ab where the primary representative mayaccess current inquiries through a worklist link 212 aba and pendinginquiries through a pending link 212 abb. The representative worklistwebsite 212 a also includes a search section 212 ac where the primaryrepresentative may search for inquiries by providing information in oneor more of a customer/party number field 212 aca, representativeidentification field 212 acb, and a plurality of date fields 212 acc and212 acd. The representative worklist website 212 a also includes aworklist section 212 ad where the primary representative may manageinquiries that the primary representative is currently working on andthat includes a from field 212 ada, a customer/party number field 212adb, a subject field 212 adc, a received field 212 add, a due by field212 ade, and a compose new message link 212 adf. In an embodiment, whenthe primary representative has the available selector 212 aaa in thestatus section 212 aa selected, the primary representative may receivethe inquiry from the party 115 if the skill set translated in step 208of the method 200 corresponds to a skill set assigned to the primaryrepresentative, described above with reference to FIG. 2e . The worklistsection 212 ad will then populate with an inquiry entry including thename of the party 115 in the from field 212 ada, an identificationnumber that was either previously assigned or assigned during step 206of the method 200 in the customer/party number field 212 adb, an inquirysubject that may be the translated skill set from step 208 of the method200 in the subject field 212 adc, a date the inquiry was submitted inthe received field 212 add, and a date and time that the inquiry must beresponded to in the due by field 212 ade. In an embodiment, the date andtime in the due by field 212 ade is 24 hours after the inquiry wasreceived by the provider 115. The primary representative may then selectthe inquiry entry to view the narrative provided by the part 115 in step206 of the method 200. The primary representative will then use theirknowledge in their assigned skill set to compose a primary response tothe inquiry by, for example, replying to the inquiry directly or usingthe compose new message link 212 adf to compose a message to a partythat has provided their inquiry by, for example, using a phonecommunication, a fax communication, a face-to-face communication, or avariety of other communication methods known in the art. In anembodiment, the worklist may automatically populate with a new inquiryfrom, for example, the party 120 or 125, when the response to theinquiry is sent to the party 115. In an embodiment, the worklist maypopulate with a predetermined number of inquiries and, as thoseinquiries are responded to, may populate the worklist section 212 adwith new inquiries such that the predetermined number of inquiries isprovided to the primary representative.

Furthermore, the metrics engine 110 g is connected to the representativeworklist website 212 a and is operable to record and analyze theinquiries moving through the inquiry response center. For example, allinquiries provided to all of the representatives in the inquiry responsecenter and the time used to provide a response for individualrepresentatives are recorded in the metrics database. Such informationmay be analyzed to determine, for example, average response times forinquiries, inquiries processed per day or hour, and a variety of othertypes of information that can help in determining, for example, theproductivity of individual representatives and what days of the week andwhat times of the day experience the most inquiries.

Referring now to FIGS. 1a, 1b, 1c and 2a , the method 200 then proceedsto decision block 214 where it is determined whether a supplementaryresponse is needed. If it is determined that no supplementary responseis needed, the primary response becomes an inquiry response and themethod 200 proceeds to step 222. However, during step 212 of the method200, the primary representative may determine that the inquiry includesa request for information on a second subject that the primaryrepresentative does not have a proper skill set to provide. In analternative embodiment, during step 208 of the method 200, it may bedetermined that the inquiry included requests for information onmultiple subjects requiring multiple representatives with differentskill sets to provide an inquiry response. If it is determined that asupplementary response is needed, the method proceeds to step 216 wherethe inquiry is forwarded to a supplementary representative. In anembodiment, the supplementary representative is substantially similar tothe primary representative and is connected to an IHS network such as,for example, the network 105, via an IHS such as, for example, the IHS130, with the provision that the supplementary representative has beenassigned a different skill set or sets than the primary representativeusing the representative skill set website 210 a. In an embodiment, theprimary representative has access to a representative worklist websitethat is substantially similar in design and operation to therepresentative worklist website 212 a, illustrated in FIG. 2f . Themethod 200 then proceeds to step 218 where the supplementaryrepresentative uses their knowledge in their assigned skill set tocompose a supplementary response to the inquiry. The method 200 thenproceeds to step 220 where the primary response composed by the primaryrepresentative in step 212 of the method 200 and the supplementaryresponse composed by the supplementary representative in step 218 of themethod 200 are combined into an inquiry response.

Following step 220 of the method 200, or if at decision block 214 of themethod 200 it is determined that no supplementary response is needed,the method 200 proceeds to step 222 where the inquiry response isreviewed. In an embodiment, the inquiry response may be reviewed for theprimary representation and/or the supplementary representative based onthe information provided by the representative supervisor in thereviewer selector 210 ag on the representative skill set website 210 a,described above with reference to FIG. 2e . In an alternativeembodiment, the review is mandatory due to of the subject matter of theresponse such as, for example, a response to a financial inquiry or aninvestments inquiry. In an embodiment, the review may be for qualitycontrol of inquiry responses and a predetermined percentage of theinquiry responses from representatives in the inquiry response centermay be reviewed. In an embodiment, the reviewer will correct any errorsin the response or confirm that the response is correct. The method 200then proceeds to step 224 where the response is sent to the party 115.The routing engine 110 e may associate the response with all partiesinvolved with the response such as, for example, the primaryrepresentative, the supplementary representative, and/or the reviewer,and store that association in the representative database 110 f. Theinquiry response is then provided to the communication engine, whichsends the inquiry response to the party 115. The association of theinquiry response with the parties involved in the response allows theparty 115 to respond to the inquiry response and to have that responserouted to the primary representative, the supplementary representative,and/or the reviewer. In an embodiment, the provider 110 is a membershiporganization and the party 115 is a member of the membershiporganization and additional security is provided by sending the responseto the member through a website of the membership organization ratherthan, for example, Simple Mail Transfer Protocol (SMTP). In anembodiment, the response may be read by a representative to the party115 using a phone communication, sent to the party using a SMS or textmessage, using a fax communication, using an email communication, orusing a variety of other communication tools known in the art. Thus, asystem and method are provided that provide a common inquiry responsetool for a provider across multiple lines of business that ensures thatrepresentatives of the provider receive only those types of inquiriesthat they have the skill set to respond to.

Although illustrative embodiments have been shown and described, a widerange of modification, change and substitution is contemplated in theforegoing disclosure and in some instances, some features of theembodiments may be employed without a corresponding use of otherfeatures. Accordingly, it is appropriate that the appended claims beconstrued broadly and in a manner consistent with the scope of theembodiments disclosed herein.

What is claimed is:
 1. A system, comprising: a memory; and a processorcoupled to the memory and operable to execute instructions to: receive,at an inquiry response center, a plurality of inquiries includingcurrent inquiries, pending inquiries, and a first inquiry from a firstparty, wherein the inquiry response center comprises a plurality ofrepresentatives, each assigned to at least one skill set from aplurality of skill sets; translate the first inquiry to a first skillset from the plurality of skill sets; route the first inquiry to aprimary representative who has been assigned to the first skill set;provide access to the primary representative to a representativeworklist website providing a field for selecting a status of the primaryrepresentative, a folder section to access current inquiries and pendinginquiries, a worklist section for managing inquiries assigned to theprimary representative, and a compose new message field for preparing areply to the first inquiry; and a metrics engine connected to therepresentative worklist website to record and analyze the plurality ofinquiries.
 2. The system of claim 1 wherein the filed for selecting astatus includes available, unavailable, away, and offline.
 3. The systemof claim 1 wherein the representative worklist website further comprisesaccess to a search section for searching the plurality of inquiries. 4.The system of claim 3 wherein the search section includes fields forentering a customer number, a representative identification field, and adate field.
 5. The system of claim 1 wherein the worklist sectionincludes a from field, a customer number field, a subject field, areceived field, and a due by field.
 6. The system of claim 1 wherein themetrics engine records the time it takes for each of the plurality ofrepresentatives to respond to an inquiry.
 7. The system of claim 6wherein the metrics engine determines the average response times of arepresentative, the number of inquiries responded to in a time period,and the time of day or day of the week when the most inquiries arereceived by the response center.